New pistol break in period?

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Hi there, I have seen some posts on another forum and they kept referring to after break in. What is the break in period of a pistol, is there anything in particular that needs to be done in that period out of the normal cleaning?

Kind of like you're supposed to break in the engine of a new car, same for guns. Some come out of the box and function perfectly. Others need to have 500 or so rounds put through them to get everything working properly.

Put 500 rounds through it (including some JHP/Bonded) and if you don't have any problems I would feel confident that it's broke in. There may be a few out there that recommend more (most are less) but I don't know about them.

Put 500 rounds through them before what? Like with a car, you break it in for 5000 miles without going over 3,000 rpms, for example, and then you can drive balls out. How does this apply to a handgun? Shoot 500 rounds, and then what? It is more accurate? I guess what I'm getting at is a gun is like an on/off switch, where a car is like a dimmer switch, and I don't see how you can "baby" your handgun for the first few shots, and then unleash it once it's broken in. I hope that makes sense

Some semi-autos need a break-in period, the Kahrs being a good example. I've also heard/read that the tightly built 1911's will need this too, but I've not ever seen it. OTOH, the majority of semi's do not need any type of break-in. The good ones shoot just fine from the get-go.

Unless your user's manual states the need for a particular break-in, I wouldn't worry about it at all. Just clean a newly-acquired handgun, and go shoot....

Put 500 rounds through them before what? Like with a car, you break it in for 5000 miles without going over 3,000 rpms, for example, and then you can drive balls out. How does this apply to a handgun? Shoot 500 rounds, and then what? It is more accurate? I guess what I'm getting at is a gun is like an on/off switch, where a car is like a dimmer switch, and I don't see how you can "baby" your handgun for the first few shots, and then unleash it once it's broken in. I hope that makes sense

I think the point in "break in" is to ensure that the brand new handgun you just purchased is going to function properly and safely. Some guns have smoother triggers after 500-1000 rounds and like mentioned before, the slide to frame fit works itself out in most cases. Most of us intend to use, not abuse.

And I think "baby" the gun is the wrong term. I think it's "lets be slow and patient to make sure something doesn't break and go KB in my face" on the the first few rounds. That's my opinion anyways.

And I think "baby" the gun is the wrong term. I think it's "lets be slow and patient to make sure something doesn't break and go KB in my face" on the the first few rounds. That's my opinion anyways.

You're right. "Baby" is the wrong term. In some guns, you need to expect some failures when they're new. Whether it's ejection issues, feeding issues, stiff triggers, etc. some brands require a few hundred rounds to work out all the kinks.

No such thing on a SIG. Unless you consider tight mag springs, to be a breaking in period. Or some models the slide release, take down levers/pins, de-cockers, (certain models) are stiff. I specifically mention SIG because other than a Walther PPS, they are the only handguns I've purchased new. So I'm not sure about the others. But all the things I mentioned above are not what I believe, the definition of "break in period" means. More so towards the way of, overall action of the weapon. Feeding, extracting, etc. etc.

I dunno, I guess one could look at it from both ways. But when I hear the term "break in period" in regards to a weapon. That's how I perceive it.